Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome

What is Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome (DSPS)?

Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome (DSPS) is a sleep disorder in which a person’s circadian rhythm (sleep/wake cycle) is delayed from the typical day/night cycle. People with delayed sleep phase have a natural inclination to go to bed later and wake up later than what is typically considered normal.

How Do Circadian Rhythm Sleeping Disorders Work?

Delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS) is one of many circadian rhythm sleeping disorders, and in fact it is the most prevalent of all such disorders. It is the opposite of advanced sleep phase syndrome, in which people go to bed and wake up earlier than normal. People with delayed sleep phase generally go to bed in the early morning hours, from 1 am to 4 am, and wake up later in the morning, from 8 am to 11 am. Socially active people, and those considered ‘night owls’, who feel more awake or sharper during the evenings, are at a high rate of having or getting this disorder.
When delayed sleep phase is not the result of another sleeping disorder, people who have it will achieve sleep quality and duration equivalent to those with normal sleeping schedules. If the delayed sleep phase is not interfering with daily routines, or is in fact complimentary of the subject’s routine, it may be advised to maintain the routine, as the circadian rhythm disorder might not be harmful.

What is Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder (DSPD)?

When Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome starts to interfere with ‘life’, by conflicting with daily routines such as work or school then it is called Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder (DSPD). When the disorder comes into conflict with daily routines, such as school or work, that requires waking up earlier than would otherwise be natural, the disorder could lead to sleep deprivation and other issues. Delayed sleep phase is responsible for 10% of all chronic insomnia cases.

Common Symptoms of Circadian Rhythm Disorders like DSPS & DSPD

People who have a delayed sleep phase which interferes with their routine often compensate by napping during the day, or sleeping excessively on weekends to counterbalance the deprived sleep during the week. This can lead to temporary relief, but perpetuates the delayed phase cycle.
Circadian rhythm disorders are caused by the body’s internal clock not resetting and adapting to changes in sleeping patterns, or doing so slowly. In most individuals, going to bed at a time different than what is normal for them will result in the circadian rhythm adjusting and allowing them to fall asleep and wake up as desired. In those with delayed sleep phase, even when suffering through lack of sleep, the body maintains its inclination to go to bed at the usual time, making it difficult to fall asleep even when feeling physically tired. Likewise the body will tend to wake up at the same time, regardless of the amount of sleep, be it too little or too much.
In contrast to advanced sleep phase, which has minimal effects on work or school obligations, people with delayed sleep phase are more likely to have their sleeping disorder interfere with their necessary daily schedule, leading to chronic sleep deprivation. This can negatively affect school or work performance and social standing. People with Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome (DSPS) and Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder (DSPD) may be labelled as lazy, unmotivated or undisciplined.

Who Is Most Likely To Be Affected By DSPS?

Delayed sleep phase affects as many as 15% of teens and adults, a much higher rate than advanced sleep phase, and those with delayed sleep phase are generally younger than those with ASP. It often develops in adolescence and continues into early adulthood, though it may also begin in adulthood. It affects both genders equally. Like ASP, DSP also has a genetic link, and people with a family history of DSP are 3 times more likely to have it as those with no family history of the disorder.
Environmental conditions can lead to the development of Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome (DSPS) and Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder (DSPD). A lack of morning sunlight exposure, and an overexposure to bright evening sunlight are likely to lead to a shift in the circadian rhythm towards a delayed sleep phase.

What is the Treatment for Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome?

If delayed sleep phase is interfering with your daily schedule, it is important to take steps to minimize its effects. Nearly 50% of all reported subjects with DSP also suffer with depression. While there is no easy cure for DSP, and although DSP has shown high levels of resistance to many treatment methods, consulting a doctor should still be a priority.
The most common method of treatment is the gradual scaling back of sleeping times, until they achieve the desired timeframe. The schedule would then be rigidly implemented. While this can be effective, maintaining the new routine is imperative, as it often resets completely if the individual diverts from the new habit even once with a late night.

How Does Bright Light Therapy Work?

Bright light therapy is also an accepted treatment that has shown some positive results with Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome (DSPS) and Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder (DSPD). It involves exposure to bright light at early morning hours shortly after waking up, and avoidance of bright outdoor light during the evening hours. This has been demonstrated to readjust the circadian rhythms of individuals to more normal schedules.

Does Melatonin Work To Treat DSPS or DSPD?

At least one sleep study in 2010 concluded that “Melatonin is effective in advancing sleep-wake rhythm and endogenous melatonin rhythm in delayed sleep phase disorder.” If you believe you’re experiencing DSPS or DSPD consulting a doctor should still be a priority to determine proper treatment.

Reader Interactions

Comments

I am sixty five years old, otherwise healthy male. I have BP and am talking lodoz 2.5, for the last 15 years. M problem is that I am suffering from DSPS from last over 12 years. Is there any treatment at all for DSPS or I should suffer lifelong like this. Please advice what I should do.

Can delayed sleep disorder cause you to Only get two and a half two three hours sleep at night for 2 to 3 weeks in a row and then make you sleep one night for 12 to 14 hours weather at the night or day to make you feel rested again even if you take sedatives at night like mood stabilizers as well as a hypnotic like Ambien?

My DSPD was so bad I got so sleep deprived that I would pass out instantly at 10pm. But it was impossible to wake up until noon.
When I had a sleep study done, my dr said I was so sleep deprived I fell asleep early but my brain stayed awake until 3am anyway! Sneaky brain.
So just bc your body is asleep doesn’t mean your brain is and DSPD doesn’t respond really to drugs from what I find.

My 12 year old son was recently diagnosed through a sleep study with DSPS. He has been this way since I adopted him when he was 13 months old. It is worse now with adolescence which triggered the sleep study. He was also diagnosed with severe ADHD and ASD (autism spectrum disorder) when he was 8. Sleep meds simply do not work on him unless he is severely sleep deprived. Only then will melatonin help him catch up on sleep. They stop working after a couple of days. His sleep study doctor said that this is normal for him and biological. He said that it has to do with reduced integrity of white matter in the brain and at this time there is no cure, just short-term fixes. He advised homeschooling so he can sleep what is considered normal hours for him. This is all complicated by the severe ADHD and ASD. It also explains his cognitive disorder in math.
It is difficult because I like to be in bed by 10 pm and am usually up around 7 am. It was easier when he was younger because I could just shut him up in the room with me. Now, I have to make sure to have bells on doors to keep him from roaming while I sleep.

Absolutely! This totally happens to me, and although I don’t take hypnotics (I get the psychotic side effects and they don’t really help me sleep that well anyway), I am on mood stabilizers for bipolar disorder (I highly suspect the chronic deprivation since childhood played a key role in developing it, though I also have family history). I recently started taking seroquel (antipsychotic and mood stabilizer) at night, and it does help me sleep somewhat, if I remember or don’t resist taking it, but I’m sure my body will adjust to the drowsiness effects soon and it won’t work anymore. Either way, one of my passions in life is Cuban salsa dancing, which usually happens between 11pm and 2am, and I am not willing to give that up forever just to try to maintain a rigid, drug-induced early sleep schedule which doesn’t even help me feel rested in the morning (if I get up before 9:30, I am miserable no matter how long I’ve been asleep). When I finish grad school soon I will definitely be arranging a modified work schedule when I start my career. This is no way to live. I hope you have some possibility of modifying life to fit you rather than destroying yourself to conform to arbitrarily* early hours.
*arbitrary to work 9-5 or for kids to attend school even earlier, though I realize if you have kids that naturally wake up early it’s not arbitrary. If I ever have any, there will have to be my partner or a nanny to do early mornings.

I have had problems falling asleep since I was young. And getting up for school was horrible. My husband calls me a night owl. My usual time my body starts to unwind is 2am. And I sleep in at least til 11am. If not I can barely function. Plus, my body hates day light savings time. Too much light late into the night. When it changes back I feel so relaxed. I did a sleep study years ago that said I have narcolepsy. But after reading this I think it’s more ASA. Can’t to show my husband this info.

I am 17 years old, i recently did a research on sleep snydromes because i´ve been stayin up very long every day usually falling asleep around 2AM to 6AM depending on my schedule for the next day. Iˇve become very depressed since it´s been affecting my function throughout the day, sleeping mostly 2-4 hours before i had to wake up to school/doctor apointments etc. resulting in me just skipping them mostly. Everything i read about this syndrome fits me so accurately that it´s almost scary. I don´t really know what should i do now that i realized i probbably have this syndrome. Iˇve read that it´s frequently misdiagnosed or that most parents/doctors assume that symptoms are basically thought up to justify staying up long or to avoid school/morning chores. Iˇm pretty sure that it´s not my case since even when i don´t have anything for the next day i still follow the same routine. Should i tell this to my ordinary doctor or seek up a specialist on this? Not really sure what my next steps should be or if my parents will understand. I would much apreciate some advice about how should i approach this.

Hi!
DSPD stinks!
First thing I would do is find a 10,000 Lux lamp. It mimics the sun. The light hitting your retinas tells you to wake up.
You use the lamp in the room with you in your line of sight for 30-45 minutes each morning at the time you WANT to wake up. Make it the same time every day.
It then makes it easy to fall asleep. And then you can wake up on time. Mine was very bad and the lamp made a world of difference.

I got so frustrated w/my delayed sleep that I went to UCLA Medical Center & got diagnosed. All my doctors would look at me like I was crazy. I went to a local sleep clinic & was dismissed by the doctor. I suffered a TBI & after that I could not fall asleep till 2 AM with help of medication to sometimes not sleeping at all. I get migraines if I wake up to early & the sleep clinic told me its from sleep derivation. I tried light therapy, but it didn’t seem to do a lot for me. Depending on where you live (I’m in Southern California where sunshine is prevalent,So I bought a light box but up at UCLA they told me it wasn’t necessary. I was told to set my alarm to alert me when to go to bed I picked 1AM then they said set an alarm to wake you at the same time each day 11AM. When you get up open the curtains to let the light in. If you want to get up earlier Set your clock to wake you up 15 min earlier each day until you get the desired time. It was such a relief to see I wasn’t crazy or lazy like some thought. It is a real medical condition. If you do use Melatonin I was told at UCLA no more then 1.5 Mg is needed more is worse. Also it is not something that will make you sleep. It just tells the body soon it is time to go to sleep. You should take it 3-5 hours before your bedtime. Also, you can stop taking it when you have achieved the bedtime you want. It is not something you need to keep taking. However a Natural Path told me since I am a cancer survivor 3 Mg can help prevent in staying Cancer free. Never had heard that before, but nice to know.

I am a computer engineer who works 9 hours a day on a PC.
After I come home I spend further 4-5 hours per day playing games, watching movies,etc
This makes it very difficult to sleep and has lead me to develop DSPD.
I have been doing this for over 9 years and i sometimes skip work twice a month to catch up on my sleep.
I have tried not using PC/mobile at night but I just lay awake in my bed doing nothing.
This has become a real problem for me, please help!!

I’ve just recently lost my job, landed another. Broke up with my girlfriend. Have to move.
Tentatively I will cut back caffeine.
Establish a regular workout routine.
Eat healthier, home-cooked foods.
Read and play music (Jazz guitar for now) until I become tired.
I figure if I keep myself away from computers and games I would keep away from overstimulation.
I will allow my sleep schedule to go full circle.
Staying up an hour later and going to sleep an hour later each day.
If that doesn’t work, I will take a small amount of melatonin 1 hour before I want to sleep.
Another idea, bi-phasic sleep, or polyphasic sleep. Some of the greatest minds in history had strange sleep patterns.

Sleep is covered rather well. At < 1 Hz theta brainwave entrainment and/or meditation help. If you slip up then it's back to square one. The .8Hz oscillating sine wave goes well with pink noise. Wear an eye mask in Summer and lightbox for winter) The blue end is the key. Measure in PAR not LUX . Plants use the same wavelength to grow.

Hello.
I am a 23 year college student. I have been having trouble sleeping for at least half my life. Lately I have really started getting fed up with it. I take 40 mgs of Adderall a day. I some times don’t take any in the evening,and have even started slowlin down on drinking any soda in the evenings. I feel tired and sometimes can even fall asleep early too. But most nights I lay in bed, with my mind stI’ll racing. And when I get up, ive already slept until noon. It’s making my daily life a real struggle. Any good ways I can try to relax more before bed? I’m hoping that by doing that, maybe, I could get into a rigid sleep schedule.

Hi,
Had sleep issue for 40years since a kid. All males in the family have it. 2am-3am seems to be the magic hour to fall asleep. Can’t catch up on sleep with naps, only can hope to sleep in on weekends. No prescription helps. Passion flower tea around 7pm helps a little and no digital distractions(tv,computer,phone,etc) Also found gravol helped with a deeper quality of sleep but didn’t help go to sleep. White noise machines helps, or sometimes a fan. Best solution on a 9-5 schedule is keeping routine and balanced diet/exercise while keeping stress and distractions minimized while using the tea, gravol and white noise. And stay away from sugar and processed foods.

I have had DSPS all my life. Remember a a young child not wanting to wake up and staying awake all night. it is hereditary in my family. I have been called lazy all my life , my close relatives. It is depressing. I take addarol on days I have to get up and sleep rest of time.I have to give in to my body or i get sick. I required early because DSPS is a disability approved my Medicare. Now at 63 I can just relax and let my body do its thing.

I am now 61 and have DSPS, which really gets me down as I get to sleep about 5 or 6 am then can’t wake till 12 or 1pm so my family don’t ask me to do anything with them now as they know i won’t be up and ready.I haven’t been to th dr as i don’t think they can help as in England they probably haven’t heard of it.I want to try to gradually go to bed a bit earlier each night and get up a bit earlier each day before summer gets here and i waste my days sleeping.I have to work self employed so I can do things when I can.People just think you are lazy and it is affecting my self esteem.

EVERYBODY… get thee to a Costco and buy yourself a 10,000 lumen light. Total game changer.
The fix for me was as simple as that. Learn when/how to use it and that’s it. Read through the Amazon reviews on these lights and you will find many kindred spirits. SADD lights, Light Therapy Lamps are what you want. And it has to be 10,000 lumens, to work. JUST GET THE LIGHT!!!

My 17 year old daughter was diagnosed with DSPS about 6 months ago. It has been a really tough 2 years. She was seen by at least 6 to 8 specialists in CT and at Boston Children’s Hospital before getting to a great doctor who is very educated on the syndrome. She was a fantastic student and athlete, had lot;s of friends and was doing so well. Now we can hardly get her to leave her room. She is going to sleep at 5:00am and waking around 2:30pm. She is unable to attend school so she has a tutor and will do some online classes to complete high school. I was just wondering if anyone could comment of the psychological side of the illness. I keep telling her she needs to get out of the house but so is extremely resistant and not interested. Thanks!

Hi Katherine, I’m not sure what you’re actually asking for in regards to the psychological side. I’ve suffered with DSPD for the past 30 + years and I don’t believe there is a psychological side from DSPD. Some people also suffer from depression and I believe that number is about 50% of DSPD sufferers. However, DSPD is said to be a neurological issue.
The hardest part mentally/emotionally from my experience is the constant comments and related frustrations of those around me even in a joking manner. It’s very disheartening that others just can’t accept my different schedule as normal. It’s always looked down upon as a problem. Even if no comment is made and I see it in their eyes, I’ll carry that as guilt for the entire day even though I know it wasn’t my fault and I couldn’t have done anything to change it. There is no cure for DSPD. The best thing I’ve found to help me with societies schedule is Ambien. 10mg does help me get up in the morning if I have something really important scheduled. However, the state has now set regulations on the dosage of Ambien and only allow women to be prescribed 5 mg / men 10mg. Apparently, the women were sleepwalking. And unfortunately, 5mg does not put me to sleep. So there was that.
There are so many possible reasons for your daughter not wanting to go out. Anything from bullying, to better online friendships, to genuinely not having an interest. I don’t believe that has anything to do with DSPD. It could have to do with a related issue like depression but, not DSPD.
My advice is to help her learn to deal with it. Help wake her up every day no matter how many times you have to tell her it’s time to get up. Let her sleep longer on the weekends. Teenagers naturally need more sleep than adults, so I would make it a goal to wake her up by 11am, not 2:30pm and whenever on weekends. I’ll admit that there’s been a couple times I’ve slept 26 hours straight because my body needed the make up sleep. Believe it or not, I wasn’t tired and blah from too much sleep either. On the contrary, I felt fantastic! That’s why I suggest longer weekends. I really hope your daughter will be lucky enough to grow out of it by her 20’s. Many do. I did not. Best of luck to you!

I guess it’s true. Misery does love company. It makes me feel a lot better knowing others struggle with this as well. I’ve been struggling with my sleep since childhood. At 15 I even underwent a sleep study at Georgetown Sleep Clinic. The result was that it was just my biological clock. This was in the late eighties to early nineties. It was my ex-wife’s mother who came across this disorder and told me about it. It has impacted every area of my life. I never keep a regular cycle. Right now I sleep at 10am and wake at 6pm. In a week or two it’ll be something different. However, it’s always late to sleep and late to rise. Occasionally, I come full circle and end up sleeping early and rising early, but that never lasts more than a week. This runs in the family on a my mom’s side. I’ve tried light therapy with marginal results, but I’ll continue to try it because it’s the most promising thing I’ve seen. I’ve just learned to make due by having more flexible job schedules, going to school online, and taking something to help me sleep nights before I have to get up earlier, etc.

I have been lucky in my life that my choices have worked with my sleep disorder. I have been a night owl since I was a teen. I worked most of my adult life as a bartender so going to bed a 4 am was “normal” for that job. I could then sleep late during the day while my child was at school and be awake to pick her up and spend the afternoon with her. For those of you with teens suffering with this my suggestion is that you encourage them to find things to do that are productive with their wakeful hours. It is a lot easier tho feel good about your “weird schedule” if you are creating art, crafts etc… or enriching your mind with books and music rather than just watching late night tv. Home schooling is great when possible especially if school work can be done late at night. Also remind them that many great jobs rely on night workers, doctors, nurses, third shift workers in all manufacturing plants, long distsance teuckers, bartenders and servers, any 24 hour open establishment, train conductors, pilots, artists, writers, the list goes on and on. The important thing is to think outside the box and make the world work for you!

It’s okay to be different they say. It’s okay to be different colors, speak different languages, eat different foods, practice different religions, etc. But it’s not okay to run on a different time of day. That’s what society tells us with this 9-5. I’ve suffered with DSPD for the past 30-40 years, way back when I remember my brother picking up my mattress and tossing me on the floor to wake me up in the morning. I had my brothers wake up flight, my ex-husbands nagging and now I rely on the Screaming Meanie 220 to get up. Problem is there is no snooze on the SM220. Regular alarms don’t usually work too well. People can’t understand that not being up at the crack of dawn is seriously out of ones control. I sleep great when I sleep. I go without sleep an average of 3 nights a week. I just stay up and work all night and then of course work the next day too. Those are the only days I go to sleep before 3am – after a 36 – 40 hour work day. My boss is very good to me and I’ve worked for him for 7 yrs now. Today he asked me what takes all my time in the mornings. I usually blow the question off with some dumb one liner. But that question always sinks deeper with me because I really like my job and just him asking the question means it’s bothering him. I’ve tried to explain DSPD to so many others in the past and they’ve all just told me I’m full of s**t. How can I be full of it when my doctor has even written me a prescription to go camping for 2 weeks straight in an attempt to reset my clock? As far as I know that’s a pretty rare prescription for a doctor to write. It’s too bad I don’t have the means to take advantage of it. Anyway, I want to know if anyone has had success in getting people to believe them when explaining that you’re late due to DSPD? I honestly think it sounds like some dumb excuse too. It’s just so frustrating!! I truly hate time!!

This is such an evil disorder. My daughter was diagnosed with chronic, treatment resistant depression when she was 17 and I began suffering from the same disorder, no diagnosis or treatment available in 1965, at about the same age. She also has DSPD, and anxiety. We didn’t know about DSPS or DSPD until about a year ago and she is now 40. She hasn’t been able to finish her education or hold a decent job so she tries to make a bit here and there and her grandparents support her. I feel such despair at the tragic waste of life and don’t know how she will continue to live with this when her Dad and I and her grand parents are gone. She is on all sorts of medication that hasn’t really given her any relief in the past 20 years, just maybe some lessening of symptoms. Is there any reason to hope for medical intervention that actually works for this?

This disorder definitely makes it difficult to function in an 8 or 9am to 5pm world. It is also difficult to justify or explain to others why you cant make plans or why you don’t schedule things early morning. Getting through school and college was really difficult especially not understanding why i hated getting up early so badly. I had a job for years in which i had to be at work at 7:30 am. I was exhausted, miserable, and sick on a regular basis. Thank goodness i was fortunate enough to find a good job in my field working later hours. Although it is still somewhat early for me it helps a lot. I still make up for lost sleep on weekends. Over the years i’ve seen sleep specialist and tried various over the counter remedies as well as rx drugs including ssri’s. The bright light suggestion did nothing..was kind of a joke… as well as melatonin and most of the meds, although i am currently on small doses of two drugs to help. However, i am on the verge of dropping those as i would rather not have to be reliant on meds. Plus i feel like i am constantly forcing my body to do something it doesn’t want to. The bottom line is that my sleep cycle is different from the “norm” and i have to work at making adjustments to my life in order to live with it. As much as i would like to be an early morning person, I feel it’s healthier to accept that I’m not rather than continuously fighting it with artificial means.

Although I’ve suffered from what I called ‘sleep reversal’ for many years, having stumbled across your site it would appear I actually have a textbook case of DSPD. Due to another medical condition I had to give up work 5 years ago and have finally stopped fighting my sleep problems & in doing so allowed my body to follow its natural sleep cycle. This means on average I go to sleep between 5am & 9am and tend to wake between 3pm & 6pm. Although I don’t ever sleep right through, this daytime sleep is without doubt the best I get. What I am curious about is whether this condition & the neurological differences as a result of it, is what causes the strange & unusual response I have to a certain opiate. The drug was originally prescribed for pain and where as in most people it causes severe drowsiness and a feeling of being spaced out, in me it has almost the opposite effect in that it’s almost like I’ve taken an upper. It makes me more alert & switched on, but not in a hyped up kind of way & I was never high. What I find particularly interesting is other opiates do not have the same effect on me & the drug I mentioned does have a different mode of action than other opiates. So I’m curious if anybody else has experienced anything similar. I appreciate this is a US site and I’m from the UK but I haven’t found a similar organisation here yet. Thanks for your time. Michelle

Was it xyrem? I was misdiagnosed as narcolepsy and xyrem which is the date rape drug basically, makes me hyper and focused so id take it to sleep but end up in hyper mode lol similar to alcohol, depressants make me hyper, antihistamines pain narcotics, anti anxiety meds knock me out flat!

Does anyone else suffer from NES (nighttime eating syndrome). I go to sleep between 1am and 3am I wake up between 9am and11am. I drink coffee, water, and tea and am not hungry until 4pm, then I eat at 8pm then I snack on whatever until I go to bed. This has been my routine for years. Its like my breakfast is at 4pm and dinner at 8pm then whatever. I so wouldove to get up with the sun and have a real breakfast and lunch and dinner. And sleep by 10pm. I am alone dont go out of my house to shop or anything anymore. Just to the curb to throw out trash. I have set routine and its maddening at times.

I have suffered with this since i was a teenager. It has made my life hell at times. Social interaction, work, relationship. I cant explain to anyone why im this way because i dont understand . I didn’t know this was a disease, im so happy maby now i can find some answers and help.

I have dealt with this sleep disorder since my teenage years. It runs in the family. My sister and I both have it and so did our mother. My sister also has thyroid issues and fibromyalgia which has a connection to this disorder. I feel for anyone dealing with this. It’s very frustrating when other people don’t understand or label it as laziness. I find it a battle working early morning 9 to 5 jobs. I rely on melatonin, light therapy and a very loud alarm clock! I dont feel as sharp in the morning and work best in the afternoons and evenings. The days I’m not working, my body naturally wants to go back in to the same pattern. Thankfully I have an understanding family. I get a lot of work done in the evenings and at night and find its my most creative time. I now have my own business where I have flexibility with my time and it works well for me.

HI. I’m 67 retired guy and I”ve been dealing with this DSPD for about 4 years now. At the present time, I go to sleep at 9:30am or so and wake up around 6pm feeling weaker than when I went to bed. I’m literaly sleeping my life away, because by the time I”m fully awake, business hours are long over and people are going to sleep. I don’t have anywhere I have to be, other than the occasional appointment, so the idea of chronotherapy appeals to me, but I wouldn’t want to chance getting the non 24 hour problem. If anyone could tell me about a therapy that they used successfully, I’d greatly appreciate it. I’ve tried staying up all night and going to bed a few hours earier, but after a few days trying to keep that schedule, I became so sleep deprived that I didn’t care anymore, I’d take the sleep whenever I could get it. But now I’m angry. I don’t like it that they tell you to work around it. Some day, I’m going to go to sleep at 1 or 2am and wake up before noon. Then I’ll go from there. Good luck to everyone. Sweet dreams if you sleep long enough.

John, have you been checked for sleep apnea? Most of us have been having DSPD since they were young. If yours came on just four years ago, you should look into other causes.
By the way, I can’t live without my CPAP machine now.

I disagree this is a disorder. What is the usual time people sleep can be just as simple as that I think this is just a made up syndrome because it doesn’t fit into the 9 to 5 ‘normal’ routine that society want you to think is good. So any other sleep routine is bad and must be called a special name and labelled. My god 1/3 the populatdion sleeps at a different time.

Michelle – I found the same as you. Used it for years to get through uni/work/being a mum. Now I’m on my own like you I let my body sleep in the day. Trouble is I live in a small village and pretty sure people think I’m strange!!

What’s In a Name?
It makes little difference to me what it’s called or if it’s not called anything. I don’t need it to be medically labeled to manage it, but it helps a little that it has an official name, because almost everyone in our society has a bad attitude towards people who don’t get up “early.” There’s not enough emphasis in the literature about this and it’s possibly the most important reason to care about it. On top of either forcing yourself to change your sleep pattern, or changing your life to match it, you find yourself battling to keep up your self esteem in a society that says you’re lazy if you get up late, no matter how hard-working you may be. Try working 8+ hours per day, sleeping 8 hours per day, being busy the rest of the day and still have people treat you like you’re a good for nothing, piece of crap, because you weren’t up before 8 am, like they were. Now, if you work in a hospital, on the swing or night shift, it’s ok. People! Go figure.
It’s no wonder 50% of people with DSPD also have major depressive disorder.
Me Clock
I haven’t found melatonin, light therapy or any other treatment to be of any use, so I’m doing my best to manage DSPD. There are a few things I’ve found that help me. I put a clock on my phone that shows the time it actually feels to me. I go to bed around 6 or 7am and bed time would be 11 or 12pm for normal people (which I often call “day walkers.”) This is a 17 hour difference. I found online where in the world it’s 11pm when it’s 6am my time. Turns out it’s the East coast of Australia, as in Sydney, Melbourne etc. I set my extra clock (a phone app) to that time and labelled it “Me.” I’m conditioned like everyone else to think I should be working from 9 to 5 and sleeping from 11 to 7, so I use this clock to see how much time I have left to work (I worked out my life so I can work, at least part time, at home) and when I should go to bed etc.
How people view us can have a significant impact on the quality of our lives, so I do try to explain my condition sometimes. The more confident I am about myself, the better people respond, and letting people know what time it is for me helps sometimes. For example, I had someone wake me up to get me to help them grocery shop at 9 am regular time. I explained to them that it was like 2am my time and that they surely wouldn’t like to get up, after sleeping for 3 hours, to go shopping, would they?
Making it Real
It’s strange to me that this is a fairly common condition and yet it’s almost completely ignored by the mainstream media, the medical community and everyone else. This makes it’s easy to put it in the back of one’s mind and trivialize it, even when it’s a significant part of who you are and can affect life profoundly. I have to work very hard to be vigilant in addressing it and consistently working on ways to manage it. I fail miserably often, but with white knuckle determination, I get back to my reality and deal with it. I’m looking forward to the day when it’s second nature.
Some Day
Some day soon, I hope, people with DSPD will be considered a variation of normal and will not need to label their condition. I’ll still label everyone else “day walkers” though. Weak, compliant, bourgeois sheep!

I’ve had DSPS since I was a child. As a toddler, my parents had to tie me the bed at night, as I had a habit of getting up and wandering around the house all night. The final straw was when I was caught playing with the gas stove at 3 AM.
Fast forward 50+ years and I still have extreme difficulty sleeping at night. About 15 yrs ago, an aquaintence who happened to be a researcher at a sleep lab suggested that I try an experiment. For a period of several weeks I unplugged the alarm clock and quit caffeine. I was instructed to sleep when I felt like it and wake up naturally (fortunately, I was not employed at the time). Within two days, I established a regular cycle, falling asleep promptly at 6 AM every morning and waking up exactly 8 hrs later. This cycle was maintained without difficulty for 3 weeks, until I decided to try and resume a cycle more compatible with the “real world”.
I recently retired after a long career in the IT business. It was a monumental struggle to maintain employment over the decades. The only way I managed it was by being able to alter my work schedule to start later in the morning (i.e. 10AM-6PM). Even that schedule was not easy to maintain and business needs often required that I be at work at 6AM. I was lucky enough to be good enough at my job so that my bosses developed some patience. It helps to be available to fix computer issues at 3 AM.
Since I retired, I have noticed something very strange. Much of my free time in the summer is spent hiking and camping in remote areas of the country. I have found over the last three months that I can usually get to sleep before midnight when I’m camped out in the backcountry. When I return to civilization, I revert to staying up all night. The two major differences between these cycles are 1) I tend to get more exercise when out in the woods, and 2) The almost complete lack of digital distractions. The difference in my sleep cycles are quite literally night and day.
I’m going to be trying out shutting off the electronic stuff early in the evening to see if that makes a difference. I suspect it will, as I seem to rely on these devices to keep me occupied while I’m not sleeping at night. I’ll post back here with the results.
BTW, I suggest to others that struggle with DSPS to try to arrange a night work schedule. I worked the 10PM-6AM “graveyard” shift for several years and had perfect attendance at work. Never late and no sick days. It was great while it lasted.
JG

Thanks for telling your story John G. Please let me know how it turns out when you remove the electronics. I am trying this with my 12-year-old son who definitely has DSPD and is distracted by electronics at night.
CK

Another option, which I use, is glasses that block the blue light. You put them on in the evening and they block the blue light from tv, phone, tablet, etc. They help me a little. I got mine at Low Blue Lights website, but there may be other sources.

I’ve been trying to have a “normal” life having to deal with this since I was a child. I had a sleep study done that showed I never reached phases 3 or 4 being restful sleep and only an occasional jump into rem. I personally think that the study was flawed because they removed the electrodes just before I would normally fall asleep and in fact the Dr’s assistant said I was unrousable but I was having a crazy lucid dream during this period. Also unlike most with the disorder my natural sleep/wake cycle is between 24-36 hours awake followed by 12-15 hours asleep which often causes a bit of initial confusion when I fall asleep at dawn and wake at dusk and don’t know what time it is. I’ve tried all the options prescribed by my neurologist but nothing worked so I basically have to drug myself to sleep and I still wake up between 1 and 3 in the afternoon. Obviously if I have something important to do the next day I just stay up. I would love to find some kind of work that can accommodate my wacky sleep schedule as well as the genetic issues that leave me in constant pain although who knows… they may be related!

OMG! Nicole is it? You’re sleep problems and most especially your sleep schedule or “lack there of” sound identical to mine except mine are a bit worse, where there are plenty of days I don’t fall asleep til so late into the morning hours (& of course that’s even after taking many things just to get myself tired, as since I was a child I’ve never been able to just fall asleep “on my own”) though I was never going to sleep this late, as something back then was able to eventually make me tired, but I was also having to go to school ( on like 4 hours sleep mind you and was a zombie) and then went to college and then was able to work (again on about the same amount of sleep) and etc. back then . But yes since I was a young child I never got tired at the normal time and since a teenager could never have that natural ability to fall asleep on my own. But as I was saying above, probably for the past maybe ten years or so (by the way I’m now turning 38 next month-February of 2018) half the time or maybe most the time I can’t get to sleep until about when the sun is coming up and everyone else is going to work, but I say I feel I may be a little worse than you bc on many days, or I should say nights, I don’t wake up from anywhere from 6pm-9pm. I never even get to see the daylight. And the other thing is that I’ve going on is that I used to sleep that entire time-so part of my problem when I was doing sleep studies 5 years ago or so was that I could sleep for sometimes up to 14-18 hours at a time! Well NOW for about the last 2 years I’ve the opposite problem where when I finally do fall asleep I’m awake every 1-3 hours and it’s almost impossible to get back to sleep ugh! And even though I’ve have dreams and remember them I know for a fact I’m not entering the R.E.M. sleep which is the most important part of our sleep, and I’m sooo exhausted when I wake up and then whatevers left of the day/nite-yet I’m wide awake and can’t ever fall asleep to go to bed-even after STAYING UP ALL NITE and trying to go to sleep the next nite! That was other thing I related to you so much on which I’ve heard anyone else doing except me! I thought I was the only one! I’ve a lot of Dr appts bc of all my health issues and is any of them are B4 6 or 7pm at nite I have to STAY UP THE WHOLE NITE B4 bc I know by the time I ever get to sleep (if I even get to sleep bc there are many nites I just can’t and there have even been plenty of times I’ve been up at least 3 nites in a row ugh), I’ll have to wake up in an hour or two. Or I might not be able to wake up. It’s especially amazing how the things I take to try to get me to sleep amazingly sometimes work on those Dr. Appt. days but they don’t work til it’s too late and then since they just started to kick in and finally work it makes it where it’s impossible to wake up in a few hours! But every other nite I try them and use them they never work. Ugh. And I won’t even go into my sleep study. Ugh. Waste of time. But then I went to a sleep psychologist which he didn’t require one and instead was going to try to start working on “resetting my clock” but I’d to stop going as I’d needed 1 of my many back surgeries (unfortunately I’ve many health issues but they’re unrelated to the sleep). And no one will still give me an en explanation as to why for the past 30+ years I have not been able to just fall asleep naturally on my own! That to me is the most important and the first of my sleep disorders I’ve ever had. And yes I’ve tried every dose of melatonin and etc. Nothing works especially after you start taking it for awhile. And even if they help me w/ me DSPD how is that going to help if I still can’t fall asleep to begin w/?! All I want is even a semi-normal life. I can’t even work part-time bc of this and NO ONE understands it. I live on Long Island,NY and am willing to go anywhere for the best help, actually any help. If you get this I’d love to hear back from you or if anyone else can underworld help that’d be wonderful too. I hope maybe you’ve had some
improvements since you wrote and are well. I HOPE TO HEAR BACK FROM YOU & ALSO ANYONE ELSE WHO CAN RELATE &/OR HELP W/ INFO. Here is my EMAIL:xxxxxxxx.
PS. If they won’t show my EMAIL ADDRESS that I wrote above in this I’m going to give the best hint I can below at what it is! It is…
DANNEIT at aol . com
I don’t think I can make it any easier than that right?

I have always experienced this phenomenon myself, and it is nice to be vindicated by medical science. However, I do not believe that it is a “syndrome” or a “disorder.” Some of us are just born that way, (assuming the absence of any abnormalities in blood work, MRI, hormonal levels and the like, and assuming that we are referring to people who have always had this, it was not sudden onset, and is not environmental). Accepting this instead of letting society tell us when to wake and sleep is probably the first step to feeling better. We all have different roles in life, and I feel like there is a reason that some of us are made this way. There are jobs, roles and professions that not only accommodate this type of sleep-wake cycle, but require it. Rather than trying to cram the square block into a circular hole, we should try to embrace who we are and see how it changes things. God speed to all of you

Is so hard. My son is only 15 and he don’t sleep I give him Melatonin 10mg and still he fights to go to sleep. He could be 2 or 3 days only sleeping like 2 or 3 hours. The thing is that I get exhausted because I have to stay awake to see what’s he is doing . And at school they don’t understand . I think teachers need to learn more about their kids situations and conditions. My son has DSPS but he also have ADHD, ODD and AUTISM so is a complete package. Sometimes I don’t know what to do.

That is my 13 year old son you are writing about, including severe ADHD, Autism, and OCD. I used to get upset that he would not sleep like regular people, even with melatonin. He has been like this since I took him in to adopt him when he was 13 months old. At bedtime, I had to shit him in the room with me to keep him from crawling out of his crib and wandering. Last year, his psychologist sent him in for a sleep study and he was diagnosed. I made sure he went to the one considered to be the best in pediatrics. He told me that the best thing was not to try to force him to adjust to the status quo. It could lead to other things like depression. In addition, it could make symptoms from ADHD worse. I had been homeschooling him since he was in 1st grade, so when the doctor recommended homeschooling, if possible, to work around the “syndrome” I already had everything in place.

My name is Pamela and I’ve had this. Condition since I was a small child and my son had it add a small child too. I think my dad and brother have it but they deny it. The hardest part is the upstream swimming; your while life trying to please everyone else. Parents, teachers, bosses, etc. Once I got into my executive career in a large company it became harder. I would be the last to leave the building at midnight. I never seemed to start getting good work hours in till everyone started leaving to go home. Eventually I retired early on a long term care disability and then got ss disability.I still have to fight family members saying I’m just lazy. But I take Adderol to wake up when I have a regular world appointment. I don’t take it daily or you can either start depending on it out It ŵill stop working. I only take a half a pill to wake up and have a good day. I have to set my alarm 30-60 minutes before I want to wake up and take he medicine. I go back to sleep for the allotted time and my second alarm wakes me up. This works well. Warning don’t tell people you take Adderol as there seems to be the public opinion that you are a drug addict if you tell people. Even Department of social services will look at you odd if thou tell them even if it’s prescribed. That’s because if you take the medicines with our the disorder they become damaging to your body. But a person will this real disorder becomes normal when taking it.people have no idea how horrible. Having this Condition can be. When you are trying to wake up sometimes I see stars or feel half dead. Its like your body is addicted to sleep. And in this half in and half out stage of sleep you can do and say all kinds of crazy things. But it helps to have a son who experiences the same things and you know you aren’t crazy. Lol. Yes it’s a bad thing to have but there are a while lots worse things in life. Main thing is get a good sleep doctor that can help you through life when others don’t understand. My son fell asleep at a stoo light one time and another time pushed his wife when she kept yelling at him half asleep so it’s nice to have a doctor who understands the disorder and help you cope in life. Remember if yoh have good records and a sleep study through a doctor you are eligible for SS Disability!! Blessing to all!

I’m a 23 years old young student guy. Before, I did well in school and sports and had social life.
But then my success in life enticed me to work more. I continued working on my studies usually until 4 am. I got depression when I was around 18. I got rid of the worst depression 1 year ago, but sleeping problem remains. I got diagnosed depression only. Some week ago I got re-diagnosed ADD (without hyperactivity). I also suspect this DSPS now.
It’s 14 pm when I wake up. I live in a northern country and in the winter it is faint light outside only 9am-15am. I only get to see one hour of light or none. In the summer it’s much better and I don’t have most of the symptoms.
Now I don’t make any friends as I manage to get in school once a week or so and I’m so tired all day that I cant get things done without urge. This has become a problem, because I don’t like to be alone all the time. My cat has become my best friend.
I crave for some day-time stimulus. My productive hours usually start at 19 pm and last until 4am. Then I usually go to bed. It also strongly feel that my day is like 26 hours and I always have to fight it to be 24h.
I hate memories of my happy childhood and the feeling of myself becoming a weak and weird person. Closest people also blaming me all the time and I might get thrown out of university.
Related treatment tried/trying for ADD/DSPS:
– Concerta (no help)
– Strattera (testing)
– Melatonin (no help)
– Electrical brain treatment (helps depression)
– Cortisone (helps, but cannot be used for long)
– Psychotherapy (helps a little)
– Met 8 different doctors. I hope current one has a clue
– Bright light in the morning (helps waking up obviously)
– No blue light evenings (little help)
Yet to experiment:
1. Moving south to some sunny place.
2. Brighter lights at home
3. Stimulants. Most of them are amphetamine-related and in EU, there is no DSPS diagnose and real stimulants are off the list without narcolepsy or other verified sleeping disorders diagnose. However, I’m very curious about this stimulant called MODAFINIL or PROVIGIL. It is said to help to these symptoms with very low risk of side effects, addiction and tolerance.
Any experiences?
I would be happy to share mine on those mentioned.

Tried caffeine too, of course! Big help in big amounts, but I don’t know the best way to take it or how much I can use. Somewhat interested in those mushroom teas, ginger powders etc., but also very sceptic. Maybe still looking for some “more medical treatment”.

I am 13 years old but have been experiencing DSPD for as long as I can remember. The reason why im worried is because i was recently on winter break from school and within about 3 days i would fall asleep between 4-8 am and wake up around 4-5 pm I had become completely nocturnal and I am now realizing maybe i have something thats a little more than just insomnia

Here in London there is night-time community out there in the form of the party scene . I know because I spent my eariy to mid twenties working on the bar and club scene and spending nights and mornings alongside the subcultures, the geeks, and “freaks”, and party queens. Perhaps not the most esteemable and productive career choice but I was using it to medicate/anaethetise. Also pretty unhealthy as I was consuming class As and alcohol . This was part of it. But i briefly found my clan. It was a temporary fix.. eventually my mental health worsened but this was off the back of a traumatic relationship with someone who had a psychotic drug induced breakdown. I’ve been a night-owl since I was a teenager but I also believe trauma/stress to be an influencing factor. I’ve suffered from early onset eating disorders and I have an ongoing battle with depression, anxiety and panic and body dysmorphia disorder. I am 34 now and I have dsps as well as periods of hypersomnia ( meaning I can sleep for 12 hours or more). My mum and sister are both long sleepers ( they require 10 hours sleep per night). At 27, whilst at university I was diagnosed with dyspraxia. Dyspraxia affects coordination as well as the immune system ( who knows the effect it has on sleep) . I also have ptsd and experience flashbacks at night . I have tried taking away my devices, I have tried valerian, melatonin, histamines like Sominex , even Valium ( 10mg and would you believe it did not work- I feel asleep at 2am as I always do), lavender baths, massage, exercise( swim, gym) . I was on ssri’s for a decade , but came off them as I felt they were making me manic when I wasn’t depressed and wondered if they were causing my jaw tic ( so far this has remained). I fall asleep like clock-work at 2am. I’ve always taken safe- albeit intellectually unstimulating ( but rewarding in other ways) jobs because my difficulties have meant that I have not been able to inhabit and deal with the stresses of the adult world . I worked as a nanny which required me to be at work for 7am 2 days a week. I’d fall asleep at 2-2:30am still. I was in a relationship with an early riser and I would often get up early with him as his theory my clock would reset, it didn’t and I would have to catch up at weekends or when he went away . I am in a catch 22 because if I am sleep deprived I am
More susceptible to panic attacks. I’ve mostly given up drinking alcohol and no longer take drugs. I rely on coffee to wake me up. I suffer from neck and jaw pain and can often be tight in my body ( lying down def worse). I find it tricky, I’ve been signed off work for a year due to depression so I am ( gratefully) living off sick benefits but to get better and into work with more earning potential I could do with spending money, on a new mattress, on physio, chiropractor, acupuncture, Alexander technique and all these recommendations I’ve had but that all require money. I’m trying to think of careers I can partake in from home but fear this is part of a viscious cycle. It’s chicken and egg- did stress/depression cause the sleep disorder or via versa. They probably can’t be separated. I know that when I am stressed I get an uncontrollable urge to seek safety in sleep.. almost narcoleptic like. I grind my teeth at night and have to wear a night guard. 9 years ago I had the results from sleep tests and also found to be normal- no sleep apnea. Great to read everyone’s stories. As with others here, I’ve found my partners to view me as lazy… though with a tendency to mania I can actually be quite productive. I am just out of sync with the outside world. Every morning that I wake up late ( between 10-1pm) I feel guilty and replay those messages in my head. I long for early sleep phase syndrome. Interestingly I went through a brief period at 19 of getting back from college and going to bed at 5pm sleeping til 10pm. Eating my evening meal and going back to bed to awaken at 8am ready for college. At school, I would write all my essays at night .I also travelled alot in my early twenties – so shifts in time zone. I guess there are no easy answers. I think the biggest vulnerability of those experiencing DSPS is that they become isolated and cut off from society .

I honest to god go into a coma when I sleep, I swear I do – I go into such a deep sleep that I don’t even hear the 5 different alarm clocks. My sleep studies showed that I hardly move at all and that my breathing slows so much. They tried an apnea machine but it never worked, besides I didn’t have an obstruction that they needed to pressure open. I’ve often wondered if just a small amount of supplemental oxygen during the night wouldn’t help me. I even had my house tested numerous times for CO2, but I think I simply don’t breathe enough and that lack of oxygen exchange keeps me asleep. And as you all know, it is nearly impossible for me to even attempt sleep before midnight – 2AM being my norm. I’ve always said 4 hours is all I need – but that’s because that’s what I’ve had to do. I don’t know, but I’m relieved to finally know that it’s not just me.

Oh my goodness, I am so glad to find this. All my life I have been a night owl, and even with a cpap I still struggle. I am lucky that I have a great husband, but giving this a name helps. I have rheumatoid arthritis and that adds to the problem, but now I know what to ask.

Well, just wanted to add to the body of comments already made. I also have the same / similar sleep patterns as many of the previous people. As an infant, my mother would become so distressed by how deep of a sleep I would be in during daytime hours that she would hold a mirror up near my nose and mouth to convince herself that I was indeed, still breathing! Unfortunately for her, every night at the crack of 3am or so…my eyes would pop wide open and awake!
I had a terrible time throughout my entire school age getting up, and ready for school. This became much worse during, and after adolescence. My tardiness and attendance became worse and worse. I eventually dropped out of school. Fortunately, college was easier due to the fact that many of my courses could be scheduled later in the day, or evening. I graduated with honors.
I have accepted that I am a night owl. Completely. The primary conflict for myself, and others as I read here, is our incompatibility with our local time frame and people.
Half jokingly I say to all the vocal larks…****off, if it wasn’t for my great -go back several hundred generation- grandfather keeping watch over your sleeping great +100 grandfather during the night, keeping at bay the terrors of the night, you wouldn’t be here now!
Joking aside, just like our genes can adapt to starvation conditions, and pass those genetic adaptations on, there must have been selection pressures for some humans to be able to remain awake and alert during nocturnal conditions.
If you are a younger person, and I’ve read some who seem so here, please don’t be hard on yourself, or succumb to depression and loneliness via others. Your not “sick” or anything. Your body functions differently than many people and unfortunately, most of society. There are many,many rewarding professions that not only accommodate our bio rhythm, but need it, desperately. The health care field for one. We live in the 21st century, take advantage of the connectedness of our planet. Half the world is on “your” schedule! Use social media to connect with the 2 out of 10 in your local area to meet up with other night sentinels!
Sincerely,
Batman.